Free plastic bag with every Evoque Convertible

On the day when a 5p charge for plastic bags was introduced in England, Land Rover has launched a cunning plan to help shoppers avoid paying the fee. The new Range Rover Evoque Convertible, set to go on sale in the spring of 2016, will come with a free bag for life, saving drivers money and potential embarrassment.

The news comes as the Evoque Convertible – dubbed the ‘Convertible for all Seasons’ – undergoes final testing at Eastnor Castle. Customers who place a deposit on a new Evoque Convertible will receive a free Land Rover-branded bag for life, complete with holes for the eyes and mouth. It is hoped that customers will use the bags to avoid being seen driving the Evoque Convertible in public.

It’s a canny move by Land Rover’s marketing team and one that’s reflective of lessons learnt from the past. In a statement, a Land Rover spokesperson said: “having witnessed the horror of being seen sat behind the wheel of an Audi Cross Cabriolet, we wanted to protect our loyal customers.

“We know it’s impossible to look good in a convertible SUV or crossover, so we hope our bag for life will help our image-conscious buyers. We’ll even offer the bag in a range of trendy colours, such as King’s Road Orange and Wilmslow Bronze. We’ve covered all bases with this initiative.”

The convertible off-roader is nothing new and one doesn’t need to go back too far to discover droptop versions of the Suzuki Vitara, Toyota RAV4 and Suzuki Jimny. Land Rover itself offered a sunshine version of the Freelander, which featured a top that required a small army to remove and an acre of land on which to store it.

More recently, Nissan treated the world to the Murano CrossCabriolet, a vehicle that many people believed would signal the end of such nonsense. Indeed, such was the trauma associated with seeing a Murano CrassCabriolet, the NHS was forced to provide support for unfortunate victims.

As for the driver in this press photo, he was last seen running shoeless through the Nevada Desert, muttering something about the Nissan Micra C+C.

It’s five years since Nissan launched the Murano CrossCabriolet at the Los Angeles Auto Show and Land Rover will return to the scene of the crime in November to unleash the Evoque Convertible. Unlike the Murano, Land Rover is promising the Evoque Convertible will be “the most capable convertible in the world”, making it ideal for a quick dash off-road should one of your friends loom into view.

Frankie Clancy of WAGWAD (Wives and Girlfriends of Wilmslow and District) welcomed the news, saying it combined two of her greatest loves: shopping and posing. Clancy took a break from her hectic schedule at Tanya’s Tanning Crib to say “I just love the topless Evoque. Land Rover invited me to that Easter Castle place, where I enjoyed a relaxing spa and facial.

“A free shopping bag and a topless Rangie. What more could a girl want? Land Rover told me it’s going to be brilliant off the road, which means I can still park on the kerb outside Tanya’s. I don’t worry about the double yellows, and neither does Trev the traffic warden. He’ll do anything for a wink from me. LOL.”

Land Rover is expected to unveil the full range of bags for life at next year’s Geneva Motor Show. Look out for the exclusive teaser images, likely to start appearing around Christmas.